Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Supergirl: An updated hero from an obsolete stereotype

I'm not just talking about the upcoming television show
starring Melissa Benoist as the big guy's cousin from Krypton.

I'm talking about the whole
premise. It's almost insulting if you
dig deep enough.

Supergirl, the character, was born in the late 50's functioning as
everything from the female counterpart to Superman
to a love interest for Superboy.

Let's cut to the chase, there's
nothing that interesting about the character.
She's an also ran with superpowers and a skirt.

Does that sound chauvinistic as
hell? I suppose it might except that
what all those politically correct defenders miss is that the character is
nothing more than a misogynistic retelling of the Superman tale.

It's the same tortured existence
we've seen before with the stereotypical protagonist discovering and then
agonizing over what to do with their "super" abilities. From there comes acceptance of his/her fate
leading to a career of crime fighting and world saving with a few moral
dilemmas nobody could identify with thrown in for good measure.

Typical comic book stuff. Not a lot of depth there and really none
should be expected. It's a fantastical character after all born from super-powered heroes with origin
stories that involve radioactive spiders, nuclear accidents and alien planets. Even Batman,
a hero with no super powers, is unbelievable as he teeters on ledges of Gotham
city like some brooding gargoyle ready to pounce on evil doers.

Supergirl comes
from an age of sexist female stereotypes with perfect hair, heaving bosoms and
fits of emotionalism. She's a product of
an time where Hellboy or Spawn would be considered obscene if not
outright pornographic.

Does that even fit the image of
a modern, self directed woman? From the
sneak peeks we've had of the series it seems Supergirl is at least as concerned with picking
out the right outfit for a hot date as she is saving the world.

Far from a pillar of modern
womanhood, Supergirl is little more
than her counterpart's story line presented in a more titillating context.

There are far less insulting examples of
female super-heroines on TV and in comics with far more depth.